Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Key definition

Article 102 definition

What does Article 102 mean? In practice, “Article 102” refers to the EU competition law rule that bans undertakings with market power from abusing a dominant position in a substantial part of the internal market where the conduct affects trade between Member States. It is set out in Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and shaped by extensive Court of Justice case law. Core features include: proof of dominance (the ability to act independently of competitive constraints); no need to show intent; and an abuse that is exploitative (for example, unfair pricing) or exclusionary (for example, predatory pricing,...

Telefónica v Commission (C‑295/12): CJEU confirms stand-alone margin squeeze abuse under Article 102 TFEU without Bronner indispensability; fine upheld; regulated telecoms enforcement in Spanish broadband market

Published by a LexisNexis Competition expert

Practice notes

CASE HUB ARCHIVED

This archived case hub captures the position as at the judgment of 10 July 2014 and is no longer being updated. For further detail, see: timeline, commentary and related/relevant cases.

Case facts

Outline: An appeal was lodged against the General Court’s judgment dismissing Telefónica’s challenge to the Commission’s 2007 decision imposing a fine of around €151.9m for an alleged margin squeeze contrary to Article 102 TFEU. The Court of Justice handed down its judgment on 10 July 2014. The dispute centres on whether a ‘margin squeeze’ can be found without first establishing the indispensability of the wholesale input(s) concerned.

Parties

Appellants:

Telefónica SA
Telefónica de España SAU

Other Parties:

European Commission
France Telecom España SA
Asociación de Usuarios de Servicios Bancarios
European Competitive Telecommunications Association

Telefónica SA is the holding company of the Telefónica group, formerly the state Monopoly in Spain’s telecommunications sector. During the period covered by the Commission decision, Broadband services were provided by its Subsidiary Telefónica de España, SAU, alongside two further subsidiaries, Telefónica Data de España, SAU, and Terra Networks España SA...

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Web page updated on 22/05/2026

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